Politicians ask Bush to Review Denied Medal of Honor

SAN DIEGO (AP) - A California congressional delegation has asked President Bush to posthumously award the Medal of Honor to a Marine who was picked to receive the second-highest medal the Navy can bestow for valor.

The bipartisan delegation has sent a letter asking for a review of the case of Sergeant Rafael Peralta. Witnesses say he covered a grenade with his body to save comrades during fighting in Fallujah, Iraq, in 2004.

The delegation formed after Peralta's mother said she's been told her son didn't get the Medal of Honor because he had been shot in the head and upper body before the grenade was thrown, leading to questions of whether he could have intentionally fallen on it.

A spokeswoman for the Navy says after all the evidence was scrutinized, officials determined the nomination did not meet the standard necessary to support the Medal of Honor.

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